Northern Xinjiang, July 2017: Notes

In the image above, Beijing-based Swedish birder Jan-Erik Nilsén scans the rocks for Northern Wheatear near Kanasi Airport, 28 July 2017. The point where Jan-Erik is standing is in the Altai Mountains, at the extreme northern tip of Xinjiang, an area closer to Moscow than to Shanghai. In this post, the second in my five-part series on Northern Xinjiang, you will read my notes on the “European” birds of Xinjiang as well as other observations recorded during my expedition of July 2017. — Craig Brelsford

WED 19 JULY 2017
THU 20 JULY 2017
FRI 21 JULY 2017
Urumqi

Baiyanggou Scenic Area lies 65 km (40 mi.) southwest of Urumqi. We took the G216 out of the city and entered the scenic area on the S109. (Google/Craig Brelsford)

On Fri. 21 July 2017, my Beijing-based Swedish partner Jan-Erik Nilsén and I were at Baiyanggou (43.424675, 87.163545), 65 km (40 mi.) southwest of Urumqi in the Tianshan Mountains.

Among our highlights were spotting-scope views of Himalayan Snowcock Tetraogallus himalayensis, central Palearctic specialties Eversmann’s RedstartPhoenicurus erythronotus, Red-fronted SerinSerinus pusillus, and Azure TitCyanistes cyanus, and species familiar to Western Europeans such as Common QuailCoturnix coturnix, singing Common WhitethroatSylvia communis, Tree PipitAnthus trivialis, Common LinnetLinaria cannabina, and European GoldfinchCarduelis carduelis. I missed Blue-capped Redstart Phoenicurus coeruleocephala, and Red-headed Bunting Emberiza bruniceps and Grey-necked Bunting E. buchanani have been recorded at Baiyanggou.

Not all our activity has been in the Tianshan. A quick trip to Baihu (43.816992, 87.435352), a reservoir in the western suburbs of Urumqi, got us views of White-headed DuckOxyura leucocephala, an encounter with a family of Chukar PartridgeAlectoris chukar, and a heard-only tick of Pallas’s SandgrouseSyrrhaptes paradoxus.

In Xinjiang, Jan-Erik and I are (and the Han settlers here like to say we are) saiwai (塞外), “beyond the (Great) Wall,” in China, but not in East Asia. We are in Central Asia, thousands of kilometers from the sea, near the center of Eurasia, as the birds we have noted show. Today, with the Tianshan as our backdrop, Jan-Erik and I stood on wavy loess hills made from the buildup over eons of dust borne by wind from distant places on the supercontinent.

The people we have met so far are mostly Han, settlers or descendants of settlers from the east, mainly the northern provinces. As I have noted in other areas of China where Han settlement is recent, everyone here speaks standard Mandarin. There is no local Chinese dialect. As I have been trained in standard Mandarin, my ability to communicate with the locals is greater here than in other areas of China where the vernacular is a non-standard form of Chinese.

I arrived from Shanghai late on Wed. 19 July 2017 and spent Thurs. 20 July alone at Baiyanggou. Jan-Erik arrived late on Thurs. 20 July from Beijing.

Our driver today and throughout the trip was Sūn Yǒng Dōng (孙永东), +86 180-9964-0966. Yong Dong is a Han who was born in Urumqi, knows Xinjiang, dabbles in photography, and drives well. We recommend him.

Photo

Birders Craig Brelsford (L) and Jan-Erik Nilsén scramble down a hill at Baihu, the reservoir in the western suburbs of Urumqi. (Sūn Yǒng Dōng [孙永东])Where We Stayed

Daquangou Reservoir and Mushroom Lake lie north of the G312 on the S204. (Google/Craig Brelsford)

On Sat. 22 July 2017, Jan-Erik and I left Urumqi and began our journey north. Our first stop was Beishawo (44.374603, 87.881042), an outstanding semi-desert site 85 km (53 mi.) north of Urumqi. Later, we birded Daquangou Reservoir (44.424510, 85.989695), a compact wetland 170 km (106 mi.) northwest of the provincial capital.

Beishawo delivered four species of sparrow: Saxaul SparrowPasser ammodendri, House SparrowP. domesticus, Spanish SparrowP. hispaniolensis, and Eurasian Tree SparrowP. montanus. We also had here our only trip record of Barred WarblerSylvia nisoria.

At Beishawo I jumped out of the car into the scrub—and came face to face with a European NightjarCaprimulgus europaeus. The goatsucker was roosting on a tamarisk. Soaring overhead was Long-legged BuzzardButeo rufinus rufinus. We missed Eurasian Stone-curlew Burhinus oedicnemus and Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin Cercotrichas galactotes.

After a long drive west through new towns and farming communities populated by Han settlers, we arrived at Beihu, also known as Daquangou Reservoir, north of Shihezi. Here I had my first-ever look at Great Reed WarblerAcrocephalus arundinaceus, yet another Central Palearctic breeder confined in China to Xinjiang.

On the long drive west to Daquangou, we passed through several checkpoints without incident. It is good to have a firm itinerary so that you can tell the police exactly where you intend to go. The procedure is uniform—a quick noting of passport numbers and sometimes questions about purpose of trip and destinations.

Photo

Jan-Erik Nilsén (L) and Craig Brelsford, breakfast at Beishawo, 22 July 2017. My partner and I had left Urumqi and entered the Jungar Basin and had a week of birding ahead of us. With Jan-Erik as my partner, I could look back on my many birding trips with him in various regions of China, while in my heart I looked forward to the birth of my child. (Sūn Yǒng Dōng [孙永东])Selected eBird Lists

Reeds surround many of the newly formed reservoirs and canals in Northern Xinjiang, providing habitat for species such as Paddyfield Warbler Acrocephalus agricola. We found that species in these reeds at Kuitun Reservoir. (Sūn Yǒng Dōng [孙永东])Selected eBird Lists

On Tuesday 25 July and Wednesday 26 July, Jan-Erik and I birded Ulungur Lake and wetlands and riverine woodlands in the Jungar Basin. We were powering ever northward, and by the night of 26 July we were in the Altai Mountains, the northern tip of Xinjiang.

Among the highlights were a rare China record of Sedge WarblerAcrocephalus schoenobaenus. The wetland west of Kaba where the Sedge Warbler was found also gave us Paddyfield WarblerA. agricola and Pallas’s Grasshopper WarblerHelopsaltes certhiola, both singing, as well as juvenile BluethroatLuscinia svecica and Black StorkCiconia nigra. We looked for but could not find Corn Crake Crex crex.

The birds most numerous in these riverine woodlands are Common ChaffinchFringilla coelebs and the bright-yellow Great TitParus major kapustini. Among the common non-passerines are Lesser Spotted WoodpeckerDryobates minor and White-backed WoodpeckerDendrocopos leucotos.

The survey of lagoons at the northeastern corner of Ulungur Lake (47.339970, 87.553458) gave us a pair of Mute SwanCygnus olor and Eurasian OystercatcherHaematopus ostralegus. Anatids were well-represented; besides the Mute Swan, we also found Greylag GooseAnser anser, Common ShelduckTadorna tadorna, and Common GoldeneyeBucephala clangula. Bearded ReedlingPanurus biarmicus were present, and I once again stumbled on European Nightjar roosting in the scrub.

Drives in China’s largest province are long but we bird as we go. From the car we have seen European Roller and Saker FalconFalco cherrug and heard singing Common Quail.

Photos

Jan-Erik Nilsén scans lagoons at the northeast sector of Ulungur Lake. The scrub and shoreline yielded European Nightjar Caprimulgus europaeus and Bearded Reedling Panurus biarmicus, while the lagoons held Mute Swan Cygnus olor and Eurasian Oystercatcher Haematopus ostralegus. The point where I got this photo is at 47.339970, 87.553458 and was a good base of explorations of the lake. (Craig Brelsford)Craig Brelsford (L), Jan-Erik Nilsén, wetlands west of Kaba, 26 July 2017. Here we achieved a rare China record of Sedge Warbler Acrocephalus schoenobaenus. The boardwalk we are using here (48.060168, 86.395527) provides easy access to the marsh. (Sūn Yǒng Dōng [孙永东])Whenever Jan-Erik and I would enter a town, we would ask where the best place for noodles was. This dish was one of the best of the trip. The smell of the fried mutton was mouthwatering, and the colorful red and green peppers and bright orange bowl further enhanced the appetite. The restaurant where we enjoyed these noodles is called Sàiwài Cǎoyuán Kuàicāntīng (塞外草原快餐厅; +86 150 9752 6222). The restaurant is in Beitun, in the Tengyun Hotel building at the intersection of North Fuxing Road and Xibei Road (47.359580, 87.803222). (Craig Brelsford)

Jan-Erik and I wrapped up Xinjiang 2017 with two days in the Altai Mountains at Kanasi Park followed by a long drive south across the Jungar Basin to Urumqi.

Kanasi yielded “European” species whose ranges in China extend only into Altai. Among them were breeding Siberian ChiffchaffPhylloscopus collybita tristis near our hotel and breeding Ortolan BuntingEmberiza hortulana found along our long mountain walk. Willow TitPoecile montanus baicalensis also made here its only appearance on our trip list, and we had an unexpected encounter with Eurasian SiskinSpinus spinus.

The highlight of our walk was however supplied by a Central Asian species: Sulphur-bellied WarblerPhylloscopus griseolus, a wallcreeper-like bird and one of the most interesting leaf warblers in the world.

As Jan-Erik and I walked under a blazing sun, the heat intense, we admired, high on the cliff above, Common Rock ThrushMonticola saxatilis and Black RedstartPhoenicurus ochruros phoenicuroides.

Near the base, a nearly vertical rock face, I noticed movement. Sulphur-bellied Warbler were browsing the rocky surface the way their congeners browse the crowns of trees. In arid Central Asia, a leaf warbler has evolved that exploits a locally common but decidedly un-leafy habitat.

The drive of 760 km (472 mi.) back to Urumqi took two days. We broke up the trip with stops at promising habitat. Among the species we noted were Long-legged Buzzard, Henderson’s Ground Jay, and handsome Saxaul Sparrow.

We ended our birding Saturday at Qinggeda Lake near the provincial capital. The 160th and final species of our 10-day trip was Black TernChlidonias niger.

Photos

European-style log cabin in the ethnic Russian village (48.253677, 87.016230) near Kanasi Airport. (Jan-Erik Nilsén)Not far from the Russian-style cabin, we found these yurts of Kazakh herders. The solar panels next to the yurts are a recent addition to the ancient dwelling of Central Asian nomads. (Jan-Erik Nilsén)Traffic was backed up for miles on the narrow road leading to Kanasi Park. We used the time to get our only trip record of Desert Wheatear Oenanthe deserti. (Sūn Yǒng Dōng [孙永东])Kanas Lake, jewel of the Altai Mountains. (Jan-Erik Nilsén)

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Craig Brelsford

Craig Brelsford lived in Shanghai from 2007 to 2018. When he departed China, Craig was the top-ranked eBirder in the country, having noted 933 species, as well as the top-ranked eBirder in Shanghai (323 species). A 1993 graduate of the University of Florida, Craig was an award-winning newspaper editor in the United States for 10 years. In 2002, Craig earned a master's in business administration from the University of Liege in Belgium. Craig lives in Debary, Florida with his wife, Elaine, and their son, Tiny.
View all posts by Craig Brelsford